Nick Cassway’s “The Indulgencies”
James Oliver Gallery is pleased to announce “The Indulgencies,” an exhibition of computer-cut vinyl drawings by Nick Cassway. Cassway’s new body of work uses computer-cut vinyl on Plexiglas to display graphically bold portraits of his friends at play. The subjects in The Indulgencies are derived from candid snapshots depicting scenes of revelry, camaraderie and goofing for the camera. Through these images, we are given an opportunity to unabashedly stare at others, ourselves and reflect on what it means to be a social human.

The exhibition is broken into discrete bodies of work, including “The Photographers,” “Girlfriends,” “The Indulgencies,” “Sleepers,” and finally “The Dinner Party.” “The Photographers” presents our public selves acting out, mugging for the camera and at the same time editing our own action, knowing that most everything we do these days is for public consumption. “Girlfriends” portrays camaraderie, love and compassion among peers. “The Indulgencies” witnesses our uninhibited selves doing what we do best: laughing, drinking and gallivanting. With “The Sleepers,” we are portrayed as alone, vulnerable and at peace. Finally, “The Dinner Party” finds us as part of a larger community breaking bread together. This show’s opening reception will be Friday, November 4, from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.
The James Oliver Gallery at 723 Chestnut St., Fourth floor
Nov. 4-Jan. 13, 2012www.jamesolivergallery.com

Indian Kuchipudi dancer brings world-celebrated grace to Philadelphia
Shantala Shivalingappa, the world’s preeminent interpreter of Kuchipudi, a 2,000-year-old classical Indian dance style, will take the Annenberg Center stage with the flare and fluidity that holds a “packed theater hostage” (Washington Post). Mixing soft, flowing lines with delicate intricacies and fierce command, Shivalingappa’s dancing defies Western notions of stage perfection and topples cultural barriers.

Shivalingappa’s special one-night-only performance features the critically acclaimed work, “Shiva Ganga.” The program, choreographed by Shivalingappa and steeped in the Kuchipudi tradition of seamless storytelling, explores the balance between the Hindu god Shiva, who creates and sustains the universe through dance, and the river goddess Ganga, who embodies grace and elegance. The choreography is inspired by these distinct yet complementary energies, which need each other to maintain balance. The dynamics of each movement is governed by one or the other force, Tandava, the masculine, or Lasya, the feminine. With her carefully crafted technique derived from this ancient tradition, Shivalingappa exemplifies, merges and delineates between the two forces with a light and joyous expressiveness, her charm felt in every staccato stamp and fluid leap alike.

“Gazillion Bubble Show”
Five-time Tony Award-winning producer Jon B. Platt (“Wicked,” “The Book of Mormon”) presents “Gazillion Bubble Show,” created by and starring international sensation Fan Yang. World-renowned bubble artist Fan Yang brings a brilliant and unique theatrical experience to audiences of all ages and transforms beautiful bubbles into a thrilling, interactive experience. This experience will delight audiences of all ages, transforming a multitude of beautiful bubbles into a multi-million dollar spectacular. Audiences and critics will be wowed by bouncing bubbles, floating bubbles, misty, tiny and massive bubbles as they experience the world’s first live “snow globe” when millions of tiny bubbles fill the stage. Fan Yang’s extraordinary bubble masterpieces illuminated by his spellbinding laser magic will dazzle theatergoers aged two to 102.
Merriam Theater at 250 S. Broad St.

Plays & Players presents the World Premiere of Joy Cutler’s “Pardon My Invasion”
For the fourth straight season, Plays & Players presents a world premiere by a local playwright that asks the questions vital to our city and our contemporary lives as citizens. In “Pardon My Invasion,” when Pvt. Malcolm Jack goes AWOL from serving in Iraq, he discovers there are much safer places to hide than in the body of a 13-year-old girl. Her novelist mother enlists the biggest bombshell in her pulp fiction arsenal to seduce him out, but it will take more imagination than that to end the occupation in this dark and twisted new farce spearing sex, gender and invasion from Philadelphia’s own Joy Cutler.
Plays & Players at 1714 Delancey Place
Nov. 3-19
Admission: $20 in advance, $25 at the doorwww.playsandplayers.org

In support of Occupy Philly, Anthony Green, Fast Car and many other locals will perform outside of City Hall to raise awareness. People are expressing their discontent with America’s economic and political elites by participating in a permanent protest at City Hall. The Occupy Philly movement, which followed Occupy Wall Street and dozens of similar occupations around the country, continues to gain momentum. Anthony Green is the lead singer of Circa Survive and has a long history of involvement in other bands, from Philadelphia and not, including Saosin, Zolof the Rock and Roll Destroyer, and such notable side projects as High and Driving and The Sound of Animals Fighting.

City Hall at Broad and Market streets
Sunday, Nov. 6, 12-7 p.m.

Style and Fashion: Two Documentaries by African Filmmakers
This small selection is the tip of the iceberg of a wide range of documentary films from accomplished directors from the African continent. In addition to their skill and filmmaking styles, the value of the films lays in the filmmakers’ own expression of their cultures and stories that are both surprising and revealing — effectively engaging the viewer.

Two films, very different in style — Angele Diabang’s short “Mon Beau Sourire” (My Beautiful Smile) and Andrew Dosunmu’s documentary “Hot Irons” — remind us of the rich and diverse repository of work that redefine beauty. The films are particularly topical because they both relate to the recurrent commentaries and expressions of identity that take place across the continent and in the African Diaspora.
International House at 3701 Chestnut St.
Tuesday, Nov. 8, 7 p.m.
Admission: $10; $8 for students
www.scribe.org